The total numbers of listeners to 5 live increased by a small amount in the last quarter (October to December 2012) to 6.12 million listeners. One of our aims is to maintain an audience reach of above 6 million, so it is pleasing to do this again for the 16th consecutive time.

A lot has happened over the last year, not least the small matter of moving a 24 hour live speech radio station 200 miles, so I’m really proud of the commitment shown by our team over this period to keep making really strong and brave programmes.

5 live sports extra saw its biggest ever figure for the October-December period – up to 850,000 listeners each week. Our sports team have put a lot of focus into improving the schedule on sports extra so I am pleased to see these good numbers.

It has been a busy start to the year as we put our plans in place for 2013 and we’ve been putting some early thoughts in about Commonwealth Games and World Cup coverage in 2014. I’ve been really pleased with the strength of our sport and news journalism over the last fortnight. Highlights have included coverage of the David Cameron Europe speech when I thought we analysed all the issues very clearly across the day. The latest twist on the Lance Armstrong story - his Oprah interview – saw really significant audience interest. We covered it well on Up All Night, in 5 live Sport and on Sportsweek in particular.

We commissioned a documentary from an independent production company called “Snappin Turtle” which took a snapshot of homelessness in the UK on one of the coldest nights of the year. This was recorded and edited very quickly and we broadcast it last Sunday night as part of an extended Stephen Nolan show.

I was also really pleased with our transfer deadline day coverage and the way we worked closely with our colleagues from BBC TV and BBC Sports website to keep a track on all the stories.

They are just some of the things that have been keeping us busy. Let me know your thoughts on what you’ve been hearing.

We should have a new permanent controller in place within the next few weeks. When we do have, we will make sure we are on this blog, asking you what you think about our programmes and our coverage and any suggestions you want to share about how we keep making 5 live even better. We also have lots of exciting plans about the Ashes summer and some powerful news specials we have commissioned which we can tell you about soon.

Comments

Oh, what's your point Amsmythe? I am not making a joke about anything on a news day like this, I am making a serious complaint-comment. There are plenty of proper journalists on the station who have a professional CV that amounts to far more, probably in one of their programmes, than Bacon can offer in years of Blue Peter and Big Breakfast. Sadly Jeremy Hunt being handed over to him is an example of the root of the programming problems. It should have not have happened and the excellent job Anna did immediately after his programme should have been a special for the day. If 5 Live can do it for Hillsborough, why can't they do it for hundreds of patients who died, and their bereft families?

25.carrie 2 Hours ago It is an ABSOLUTE disgrace that you are allowing Bacon to discuss the Stafford Hospital Report on his programme, to be followed by his Moan in. How on earth can you take the subject of hundreds of deaths being discussed by him and the Minister Jeremy Hunt and then follow this with such trivia? Dreadful, dreadful, dreadful.

I thought that Richard Bacon was as low as this station could go but then you took on Robbie Savage!

It is an ABSOLUTE disgrace that you are allowing Bacon to discuss the Stafford Hospital Report on his programme, to be followed by his Moan in. How on earth can you take the subject of hundreds of deaths being discussed by him and the Minister Jeremy Hunt and then follow this with such trivia? Dreadful, dreadful, dreadful.

V Derbyshire is not in Salford again. That's every day this week. How does she get away with it, when everyone else had to move there or stay there during the week? What was the point of the expensive move? She can stay in London and work for another station as far as I'm concerned. The webcam shows the newsreader, sports presenter, weather forecaster, finance chap etc, but not the main presenter!

Well the blogs are not being neglected anyway. Coming thick and fast.Maybe Jonathan can take the feelings we express and think about how to use the criticisms in a positive way. We wouldn't post if we didn't care, and that is the important thing.

The decline of 5 Live (yes I think it is a decline) can be traced back to the Van Klaveren era and his misguided "reforms". The tabloid-esque content is beyond a joke now. I no longer listen during the afternoon with Bacon's programme being some of the most banal tripe I've ever heard. I even avoid Kermode and Mayo's film review - the comedy "double act" is wearing thin. As for sport, well there is far too much interest in golf and horseracing, and now with their being no live Premiership football on Sunday afternoons I rarely listen then. As for Savage shouting down people on 606 ("your football phone in" no more) and Colin Murray - no thankee very much. I'd also like to voice my disquiet about the Breakfast phone in about the English being "arrogant". This type of national stereotyping is surely below even 5 Live's sensationalism seeking depths?

Carrie- I completely agree about the Superbowl coverage. I've just listened to the first hour of Breakfast (I can't listen once Nicky Campbell joins in to make it twice as jokey and trivial) and the only mentions of the 'biggest event in sport' were a mention in the sports news which didn't even say what the score was and an item about how brilliant Beyonce is with one of the BBC's increasing number of 'entertainment correspondents' The most insightful comment was about the number of hairdryers being used in the 'Superdrome' as Ms Burden called it.If it's such a big and important event I don't understand why the actual sport wasn't deemed worthy of discussion.

To give praise to the station, yesterday afternoon's tribute to David Oates was excellent. The way that Ian Payne, Mike Ingham and Alan Green handled a clearly upsetting & personal story was brilliant. Another excellent example of how good the sporting output is when it's in the hands of the station's professional sports presenters.